More of a turnpike than a fast lane, really.
Gamer stuff has been a thing for a while. Everything from keyboards and mice to chairs, all with varying degrees of RGB lighting. All promising to be better than the run-of-the-mill, of course. And this technically includes things to reduce latency, like special routers and even internet services so targeted.
It is in the lattermost field that Cox Communications has decided to enter with their broadband service. They plan on offering a special “Elite Gamer” service to their plans, promising faster speeds, lower latency, fewer disconnects and less lag spikes. Per the FAQ, the service will cost $15 a month.
The service was launched earlier in the week in Phoenix, Arizona on a trial basis. The service is limited to Cox customers with a 100mbps connection or hiigher, and comes with licenses for up to 2 simultaneous users. Each additional license costs another $5.
The service does, however, seem to be a rebranding of WTFast, which has been around for some time in countries like Singapore and Taiwan. Reviews for that service have been mixed, with, in some cases, users actually reporting worse connections than without it.
This is all ignoring the controversy of ISP’s offering what equates to internet “fast lanes”. And naturally, there’s a fair bit of skepticism. Per packetthriller in this Reddit thread:
As a network engineer, this service is complete bullshit anyway. Once the traffic leaves Cox’s network, it will be just like any other traffic on the Internet. I guarantee you the majority of your game servers will not be hosted on their network. As soon as your packets leave what equipment they manage, they become just like everything else.
To put it another way, this service might not exactly be a magic bullet for your online gaming woes. But if you have problems, and you’ve got the money to burn, it might give you a bit of an edge. Or not; we’ll simply have to see how things play out for services like this.
Source: Motherboard
About Author
